Ascension Day

When he went to "invite" Xu Ying this time, he had brought two or three hundred of his own trusted men from the Pei Family. He never expected that they would all be killed or wounded along the way; even he himself had nearly perished.

Xu Ying asked, "Is the internal strife within the Noble Families also this intense?"

Pei Jingting said, "It’s a hundred times more intense than the outside world—a true matter of life and death. After this lesson, I’ll never again be disloyal to my brother. That’s why he still allowed me to come and welcome you, Young Master Xu."

Xu Ying said, "He clipped your wings without lifting a finger. Even if he wanted to eliminate you, he wouldn’t need to do it himself. A man like that is truly formidable."

Pei Jingting said, "He is the Prime Minister to the current Emperor. Of course, he’s a man of profound cunning."

Before they knew it, they had arrived at the Pei Mansion. A banquet was already prepared for them in the Mist Rain Tower, with long tables laden with fresh fruits, candied fruits, cold platters, hot food, main courses, savory delicacies, and mountain treasures—over a hundred dishes in all.

More than ten maids stood to the side, ready to serve at a moment’s notice, but there was no one else at the banquet.

Pei Jingting said, "This was prepared specially for you, Young Master Xu. My brother hasn’t partaken of the food and drink of the Mortal World for many years, so he is unable to join you."

Xu Ying took his seat and said, "Will Elder Pei not be seated?"

"Without my brother’s permission, I dare not take a seat," Pei Jingting said.

Xu Ying had no choice but to start eating by himself. But with so many dishes, there was no way he could finish them all, and he felt it would be a waste to leave them. So, he let Yuan Qi come down and help himself.

Soon, the dishes were empty. Yuan Qi said, "I’m still not full."

Seeing this, Pei Jingting said, "Bring Lord Qi a few oxen and horses."

After eating his fill, Yuan Qi tried to hide in Xu Ying’s collar as usual, but he had eaten so much that he couldn’t quite conceal himself. His round, bulging belly stuck out.

Xu Ying followed Pei Jingting along the quiet, winding paths of the Pei Mansion. They passed through corridors and walkways, crossed one garden after another, and finally arrived before a palatial residence.

Pei Jingting stopped and said, "My brother is waiting inside. Young Master Xu, I will not be going in. By the way, my brother’s name is Pei Du."

Xu Ying thanked him, walked up the steps, and entered the residence.

The palace was serene, the lanterns bright, yet there was no sound but the echo of Xu Ying’s own footsteps reverberating through the hall.

Xu Ying crossed a long corridor and entered the main hall, where he saw a middle-aged man standing with his back to him. Hearing his footsteps, the man turned around. He was a neatly dressed, middle-aged man with meticulously groomed features.

The reason for this description was the sheer fastidiousness of his appearance. His sideburns, eyebrows, mustache, and the beard below his lip had all been painstakingly trimmed. Even his eyelashes were groomed, all to make himself appear more handsome.

The same was true of his attire. His clothes were well-tailored and appropriate, his only accessory a Jade Pendant at his waist, half-hidden and half-revealed, with no other superfluous ornaments.

This was Pei Du, the Prime Minister of the current Court, and also the Nuo Immortal of the Pei Family.

"I have long heard of the renowned Xu Demon King."

Pei Du nodded slightly and smiled. "We have been eagerly awaiting your arrival. The moment Young Master Xu walked out of Jiuyi Mountain, your name shook the world. This way, please!"

Xu Ying followed him forward and asked, "Where does Patriarch Pei intend to take me?"

"To my Pei Family’s forbidden ground."

Pei Du walked ahead. A jade-like sky appeared behind him, and as the Grotto Heaven spun, the great hall before them seemed to break apart like perfectly square bricks, revealing a passage that led to an unknown destination.

Xu Ying followed behind him, a sense of shock rising in his heart.

Pei Du’s Magical Power was immeasurably vaster than Pei Jingting’s. Xu Ying felt it might even surpass that of Zhou Qiyun, an ocean of unrestrained might!

This was the power of the Pei Family’s exclusive Secret Treasury!

"My Pei Family is a Noble Family with a thousand-year history. Our ancestral Secret Treasury is called the Jade Pool."

Pei Du walked on ahead. Without looking back, as if he had guessed Xu Ying’s thoughts, he continued speaking, "But as a thousand-year-old Noble Family, we know certain secrets unknown to the outside world. This has allowed us to obtain even more treasures. For example, of the Six Secrets of the Human Body, my Pei Family possesses the legacies for all of them, save for the most mysterious one: the Spring."

Xu Ying’s Heart Spirit trembled. ’The Pei Family has already obtained five of the Six Secrets?’

Just then, a ray of sunlight shone in from the end of the passage, momentarily dazzling him. Once his eyes adjusted to the light, Xu Ying saw that they had arrived within a Jade Cave Heaven.

He stood in the Jade Cave Heaven and looked around. The very space within this Grotto Heaven seemed to have weight; moving his hand through it felt like moving through water.

A wondrous power filled the air, stimulating the Primordial Qi in his body and causing it to circulate more briskly, slowly strengthening.

A thought stirred in Xu Ying’s mind. ’If I follow the flow of this Grotto Heaven’s power, I can find the location of the Jade Pool Secret Treasury!’

Just as he had this thought, he suddenly saw a tall, thin old man sitting upright in the center of the Grotto Heaven. At the far end of this Grotto Heaven was another, and within it sat an old woman, also perfectly still.

Xu Ying followed Pei Du through the Grotto Heaven toward the tall, thin old man. As they approached, Pei Du said, "This is the first ancestor of my Pei Family, and also our first Nuo Immortal. This ancestor was born during the chaotic era of Wang Mang."

Xu Ying looked at the tall, thin elder. The man was astonishingly lifelike, but a light shone from behind his head. A narrow seam ran from the back of his head down his neck, then from his neck down his back, all the way to his Tailbone!

He was just an empty husk of skin!

They entered the next Grotto Heaven and came before the old woman.

"This ancestor was the second Nuo Immortal of my Pei Family, who achieved Enlightenment during the time of Emperor Guangwu," Pei Du said.

Xu Ying examined her closely and saw a similar seam of light running down the old woman’s back.

They reached the end of that Grotto Heaven, and a third one appeared. Within it, another respectably dressed old man sat.

Pei Du walked ahead, introducing Xu Ying to the glorious history of each Pei Family ancestor, one after another. They journeyed from the era of Wang Mang all the way to the present, and before he realized it, Xu Ying had followed him through more than one hundred and fifty Grotto Heavens.

These Grotto Heavens were all connected, left behind by generations of Nuo Immortals, forming a long passage through this jade-like space.

Xu Ying looked ahead. The passage stretched even further, and he could faintly make out more figures seated within it—presumably the other Nuo Immortals of the Pei Family.

Da Zhong couldn’t help but exclaim, ’For more than two thousand years, the Pei Family has studied the Jade Pool Secret Treasury so thoroughly that it holds no secrets for them anymore. No wonder they can produce so many experts. But still, so many of these Nuo Immortals have died! Is someone out there harvesting them like leeks?’

Xu Ying grew tense, worried that Pei Du might have noticed. But Pei Du was clearly no Zhou Qiyun; he hadn’t detected Da Zhong speaking at all.

Pei Du continued walking ahead. "My Pei Family has known for a very long time that the so-called Hidden Scene Transformation of an Immortal in the Human World is nothing but a lie. For a Nuo Immortal to hide within their own Hidden Land in their twilight years is a tragedy—a tragedy that ends in certain death. And this very tragedy has played out in my family, time and time again!"

Xu Ying mused, "Did all the ancestors of the Pei Family never think of a way to change this tragedy?"

"Of course they did!"

Pei Du said, "They tried everything they could think of. They were even unscrupulous, scouring the world for other Secret Treasuries and Cultivation Techniques, attempting to open and unify them all. However..."

He shook his head. "No one has ever been able to unify the Secret Treasuries. So, they later changed their approach. They planned to pool the power of all the Pei Family’s Nuo Immortals to create a true Immortal Realm."

He stopped walking. They had finally reached the end of the Grotto Heavens. He gazed forward, his expression dark and silent.

Xu Ying came to his side and looked ahead. An unbearable stench assaulted his senses. Shattered Immortal Mountains floated in the sky before them, their surfaces covered in rotting flesh!

Xu Ying also saw raging Blood Rivers flowing down from the Immortal Mountains, and grim Blood Lakes filled with floating chunks of rotten flesh and white bones.

The landscape there was shattered, and the great sun above was a deep scarlet. Amidst the broken mountains and rivers, a giant White Bone Skeleton clung to an Immortal Mountain with both hands, slowly raising its head. Its empty eye sockets turned to look at them.

This place was bizarre, grim, terrifying, and utterly ominous!

This was a cursed land, bearing the curse of Longevity!

"We failed," Pei Du said, his expression calm.

"But thankfully, you have come!" He turned to Xu Ying, his face a mask of fanaticism.

————A huge thank you to the great Home-cooked Dishes for the exclusive splash screen recommendation!!! Is this the first reader-exclusive splash screen recommendation on Qidian? That’s amazing!!!